Born in Gross-Reichenau, Germany (now Bogaczów, Poland), music producer and folklorist Chris Strachwitz (1931-) emigrated with his family to the United States in 1947. After attending Pomona College in the early 1950s, Strachwitz moved to Los Gatos, California, where he worked as a teacher. An avid collector of 78 rpm recordings of New Orleans jazz and Mexican ranchera music, in 1960 he created his own music label called Arhoolie Records, located in El Cerrito, California.

Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s "History Revealed: Bringing Collections to Light" project, 2009-2011.